March 2014

Vol 7, Issue 3

Give Door County

Door County

Community Foundation

In the midst of one of the coldest winters in a generation, We Are Hope, Inc. is proving to be one of the most important charities in Door County of which you've never heard.

Formerly known as WEP, Inc. (Women's Employment Project), they recently changed their name to We Are Hope, Inc. because they have equally served both women and men for years. Unfortunately, their new name sometimes causes them to be confused with the 133-year-old Hope Church, although the two organizations are not related.

We Are Hope is an umbrella organization for several important community programs. It's perhaps best known for administering the Door County Job Center. They offer career counseling, workshops on interview skills and resume writing, and of course maintain listings of job openings all over the state of Wisconsin.

With the Artic vortex bringing sub-zero temperatures to Door County several times already this winter, the WHEAP program at We Are Hope is proving to be invaluable. WHEAP, the Wisconsin Home Energy Assistance Program, is providing absolutely critical financial assistance to help people keep their homes warm. Not surprisingly, during this ridiculously cold winter, the WHEAP program has simply been overwhelmed.

Gina Wautier, development and energy assistance manager at We Are Hope, puts it bluntly, "With the propane shortage, it's just insane."

Read the rest of this story in Door County Living.

Keep the faith. Spring is coming!

Bret N. Bicoy, President & CEO

In This Issue

Preview Door County 2014 in Bonita Springs, Florida

Tales of Our Lives - a Story Slam on March 27

Sustainability Grants Spring Deadline is April 3

Women's Fund Grant Applications Due April 3

2014 Scholarships Now Accepting Applications

Endowments in Action: Southern Door Schools

Give Door County Publications Available for Download

Our Board of Directors

John Herlache, Chairman

David Eliot, Vice Chairman

Polly Alberts, Secretary

Mike Felhofer, Treasurer

Dick Egan, Past Chairman

Bill Boettcher

Michael Brecke

Jacinda Duffin

Richard Hauser

Mark Jinkins

Linda Laarman

Michael McCoy

Arvid Munson

Kaaren Northrop

Nancy Sargent

Marcia Smith

Jane Stevenson

Donate Today!

Make an instant donation using a credit card to any of the Funds of the Door County Community Foundation. Give back online today!

Or contact us to talk about creating a Fund in your family's name - either today or in your estate plans.

Follow Us Online

For the latest news on charity in Door County, read our publications and previous issues of our Newsletter, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter.

Preview Door County 2014 in Bonita Springs, Florida

You are cordially invited to join us in Florida for

Preview Door County 2014

Monday, March 17

4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

The Club at Barefoot Beach

105 Shell Drive in Bonita Springs, Florida

Join us for fun, food and friends from Door County.

We'll share highlights of the upcoming season on our beautiful peninsula.

Hear about the performances, art exhibits, conservation efforts and other activities

that will make this season in Door County special.

Hosted by

Dick & Annie Egan

There is no cost to attend this event, but please reserve your seat by

calling (920) 746-1786, or email Kacie Wilson.

Tales of Our Lives - a Story Slam on March 27th

Please join the Women's Fund on Thursday, March 27th for an evening of "Tales of Our Lives" - A Story Slam: Empowerment Through Performance.

A Story Slam is more than just a storytelling event. It's an invitation for people to share a few minutes of themselves in a room full of people who appreciate a well-told tale. These aren't stories for children, but rather an honest description of real life events and how they made us into the people we are. The stories can range from the funny to the sad. From heartwarming to heart wrenching. But they are all authentic gifts from the story tellers as they share a bit about themselves with all of us.

Expected story tellers include Carrie Counihan, Holly Feldman, Mary Hall, Nikki Hedeen, Megan Lundahl, Terry Lundahl, Bret Bicoy, and others. Follow us on Facebook for the latest updates. Between stories we'll also hear music from singer/songwriters Jess Holland and Dorothy Scott.

Tales of Our Lives is on Thursday, March 27th at the Engine Room Ale House (the former Ladderhouse) at 38 S. 3rd Avenue in downtown Sturgeon Bay. Social hour starts at 6:30 p.m. and the stories will be told from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Both men and women are encouraged to attend.

Tickets are $15 at the door - but if you reserve a seat in advance, you'll pay just $10 at the door. Reserve seats by emailing Kacie Wilson or call her at (920) 746-1786.

The Women's Fund of Door County - when she thrives, we all prosper!

Sustainability Grants Spring Deadline is April 3rd

Sustainability Grants provide the critical operational support for the charities that sustain our quality of life in Door County. These grants help pay the salary of a case manager working with troubled teens, buy music stands for a local performing arts group, install piping to bring water to a community garden, and pay teachers to help with math and reading instruction during the summer. Door County Sign

Sustainability Grants are rarely glamorous and are usually not the big ideas that stir one's soul. But this operational support is essential to the programs that sustain the parts of Door County that we love - and alleviate the challenges faced by working families because of the seasonal nature of our economy.

The Community Foundation offers Sustainability Grants because it has a fundamental belief that charities are essential part of our quality of life. Helping to support their operations is key to maintaining the parts of Door County that we love - and to alleviating the social issues arising from our unique seasonal economy.

The Sustainability Grants Spring Deadline is Thursday, April 3rd. Read the guidelines and download the application materials on the Community Foundation's website. Applicants are strongly encouraged to confer with Christine Henkel prior to the submission of an application.

Through the application for a Sustainability Grant, a non-profit organization might receive assistance from the Arts Fund, the Children & Youth Fund, the Education Fund, the Green Fund, the Health & Human Needs Fund, and/or the Historic Preservation Fund. There no longer are separate applications for each of these Discretionary Funds as there were in the past. Please consider donating to one of these funds today, or through your estate plans. Contact Bret Bicoy to learn more.

Women's Fund Grant Applications Due April 3rd

The Women's Fund of Door County builds, enriches and nurtures the lives of women and girls through collective wisdom and philanthropy. The Women's Fund of Door County is a comprehensive resource established to promote community-wide understanding of the status of women and girls to improve their quality of life. Women's Fund Logo

Priority will be given to applications that provide education and information, build self-esteem and dignity, support solutions for critical issues, and are research-based and data-driven with a focus on solutions.

The Women's Fund Spring Deadline is Thursday, April 3rd. More information and application materials are available online. Please confer with Christine Henkel for guidance before submitted an application.

Become a member of the Women's Fund and your contribution will help make grants like these possible today and into the future - because when she thrives, we all prosper!

2014 Scholarship Deadline is March 20th

The Door County Community Foundation's 2014 scholarship deadline is approaching fast. Learn more by visiting the Community Foundation's website or the guidance offices of the appropriate local high schools.

Many of the Community Foundation's scholarships are administered in partnership with Door County schools and decisions as to the recipients are made there by school professionals.

However, there are a handful of scholarships for students who graduate from Sturgeon Bay, Southern Door, Gibraltar, Sevastopol or Washington Island in which the selection process is independent of local schools.

Visit the Community Foundation's website to learn more about these scholarships and to apply. All applications must be received in the Community Foundation's offices by Thursday, March 20th at 4:30 p.m.

And if you're interested in establishing a scholarship today, or as a part of your estate plans, contact Bret Bicoy at (920) 746-1786.

Endowments in Action: Southern Door Schools

The Community Foundation is honored to administer the Southern Door Community Foundation's funds for Southern Door schools. Namely, the Eagle Fund, Auditorium & Performing Arts Fund, Athletes & Athletic Facilities Fund, Science, Agriculture & Industrial Arts Fund, the Library & Technology Fund, the Bleacher Fund, the Softball Field Improvement Fund, and the Athletic Booster Fund.

The goal of the Southern Door Community Foundation is to build its community and surrounding communities by providing financial support to the Southern Door School District to provide students with the opportunities to be productive members of their community.

Each endowment fund allows a donor to target their gift to the issues most important to them. The Eagle Fund is a general endowment which allows flexibility in meeting the most pressing educational needs of children and community. The Auditorium and Performing Arts Fund focuses on the Auditorium, ensuring that the arts thrive. The Athletes and Athletic Facilities Fund assists the athletic programs of the district. The Science, Agriculture and Industrial Arts Fund provides modern science tools and supports agricultural programs. And the Library and Technology Fund encourages quality learning experiences both in print and with computers and other types of leading edge technology.

Please consider incorporating gift to this endowment in your estate plans. Speak with your attorney, accountant or other estate planning professional. Or contact the Community Foundation and we'd be glad to help facilitate your generosity.

Many charities entrust the administration of their endowment funds to the Community Foundation. It's a safe and responsible way to manage endowed gifts, long-term assets or operational reserves. The non-profit community also counts on the Community Foundation's planned giving expertise to facilitate gifts into their endowments. By aggregating these assets under the umbrella of the Community Foundation, economies of scale allow for a far more diversified investment portfolio and lower investment fees than any of the charities could achieve on their own.

Give Door County Publications Available for Download

The Community Foundation produces several publications and information sheets to help you craft a strategy to give back in the most effective - and tax efficient - way possible. Those documents are now available for anyone to download from the Community Foundation's website. Give Door County

You'll find publications like our our Guide to Endowments which highlights different charities so families have options to consider when giving back - either today or through their estate plans.

You can download an Introductory Brochure that explains the most popular charitable Funds at the Community Foundation - along with information sheets for Donor Advised Funds, Discretionary Funds, Scholarship Funds and more.

If you'd like a hard copy of any of these documents, just contact us and and we'd be glad to send them to you. And if you're an attorney, accountant, investment adviser, or trust officer, we'll send a supply of Guides, Introductory Brochures, or other materials (and display holders) for use in your office. Just contact us at the Community Foundation.

This is just another way the Community Foundation is encouraging people to give back to sustain the community we love!

The Door County Community Foundation, Inc. is a collection of separate charitable funds set up by individuals, families, non-profit organizations, private foundations and businesses that are managed, invested and disbursed for the current and future good of Door County.

Inspiring People to Give Back to Sustain and Advance the Community We Love.